Suhrid Barua has an unbridled passion for business and sports. He has worked/written for media houses like Thatscricket.com, The New Indian Express, MiD Day, Maharastra Herald (now Sakaal Times), Pune Mirror (Times of India's tabloid daily), CricketCountry, The Assam Tribune, The Telegraph and Sportskeeda. Watch out for this blog space for interviews, analysis, match coverage, stats figures and much more!

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Dhyan Chand’s hockey wizardry left a deep imprint in the minds of hockey lovers – the grace, dexterity, poise, gumption he exuded on the hockey maidans – made him a household figure in India. Dhyan Chand was an invincible factor in India’s three Olympic gold medal triumphs in 1928, 1932 and 1936 – he loves to reserve his best for the final – at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics he scored twice in India’s 3-0 win over the Netherlands in the final – at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, he slammed eight goals in the all-famous 24-1 hammering of USA and was later again among the goals in the 1936 Berlin Olympics final against Germany which they won 8-1, a game where he took off his shoes at half-time and played barefooted in the second half. Dhyan Chand made his last international match in 1948 scoring more than 400 international goals. He was bestowed the coveted Padma Bhushan in 1956 – the same year he retired from the Army as a Major.

Sadly, the towering image he has built during his playing days and beyond, hasn’t been accompanied by recognition befitting his stature. No wonder, he did not want his son Ashok Kumar to take up hockey as a career option. “Pitaji (dad) did not get much in terms of financial recognition from any quarters despite all his achievements. So, he kept discouraging me to opt for hockey as a career,” says the legend’s son and former Indian forward Ashok Kumar in an exclusive interview, recalling the times he spent with the illustrious father on his 109th birth anniversary.

Ashok Kumar recalled those days when his Allahabad-born father was opposed to him playing hockey. “He was against me taking up hockey seriously, so I used go the maidan to play hockey by slipping across our house’s back door. Believe it or, pitaji first saw him playing hockey when I represented Bengal in the Seniors Nationals in Bangalore in 1970. I still remember a lot of pressmen and people turned up to see my dad and me at the same venue and my father told the pressmen ‘he has a long way to’…”. Ashok Kumar, in fact, was a stalwart also – he played in four World Cups (1971, 1973, 1975, 1978) two Olympics (1972 and 1976) as well as three Asian Games (1970, 1974, 1978).

Prod Ashok as to why Dhyan Chand’s exploits went unnoticed during those days, he says, “Well, pitaji did not belong to a financially sound family. He was employed with the Indian Army, but there were hardly any financial rewards doled out to him during those heydays. I think that was one of the main factors for the start of the decline of Indian hockey as youngsters probably felt that if a stalwart like Dhyan Chand receive step-motherly treatment, it was a futile exercise to pursue hockey as a career path.”

According to Ashok, his legendary father was a man of few words. “I remember when I returned home after winning the 1975 World Cup in Kuala Lumpur, it took me three hours to reach home from the railway station. When I reached home which was packed with mediamen, fans, family members, etc, I touched pitaji’s feet at the house entrance seeking his blessings, and he gladly touched my head flashing a smile – a smile which was more than words – just indicated the satisfaction of a dad seeing his son do something for the country.”

Statistics of hockey players are hard to find, but Ashok says it’s the medals that more than other things. “Today, we see players talk about the number of internationals they have played for the country. I firmly believed that how many medals you won matter more than the number of internationals played for the country. If a player has featured in many internationals for the country, but has not won any medal, there is nothing to show in terms of achievements,” he fires the parting shot.

The legend Dhyan Chand died of liver cancer on December 3, 1979 at the age of 74. His birthday anniversary is celebrated as the National Sports Day every year – an opportunity to remember the legend, who instilled fear in the minds of the opposition all across the globe.

Saturday, August 23, 2014

The Indian senior men’s hockey team has injected hopes among hockey
lovers about regaining the glory days of yesteryears. The Terry
Walsh-coached Indian team’s silver-winning performance at the 2014
Glasgow Commonwealth Games has indeed caused tongues wagging about the
marked improvement in the team’s performance and has instilled a
self-belief that the team can take on the best in the business. The CWG
performance diluted the disappointment of the national team finishing
9th at the 2014 World Cup at The Hague, Netherlands.The high-on-confidence Indians will be looking to dish out another
robust showing in the upcoming Incheon Asian Games beginning September
19. “We have to be at our best to win the Asian Games as the winner
secures a ticket to the 2016 Rio Olympics. The kind of progress the team
have made in recent times definitely makes me feel optimistic about our
Asiad-winning chances you could say the team is looking good to achieve
that,” says Indian team head coach Terry Walsh in an exclusive
interview.The celebrated Aussie coach, however, guarded against any
complacency. “No team can be taken for granted. We have Pakistan in our
group and they are a highly skilled side, who can trouble any side on
their day. Malaysia and South Korea are formidable opponents and we will
be facing them in the latter stages of the tournament since both of
them are placed in Pool A.

Besides Malaysia and South Korea, Pool A features Japan,
Bangladesh and Singapore, while the Pool B comprises Sri Lanka and Oman
besides India and Pakistan to make it a nine-team men’s event.

Ground work should be in place

Dwelling on India’s CWG performance in Glasgow, Walsh feels that the
team raised their game by a several notches as the tournament wore on.
“The boys have put in the hard yards, and as far as our first game
against Wales is concerned it was not as if the team did not play well,
just that we did not settle down in the first half but overcome that in
the second half. We have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but we are
beginning to jell as a unit going into the upcoming Asian Games,” he
observes.The passing, trapping and penalty conversions have shown a distinct
improvement in the Commonwealth Games, something Walsh acknowledges. “We
have improved in these areas, but we need to sustain it and only then
we can beat top teams regularly,” he adds.Walsh stressed on the need of putting in place a systematic hockey
programme at the grassroots level. “Having a systematic grass root level
programme will hold the key to Indian hockey’s future. If we can have
professionally-run hockey academies in each state, and churn out quality
local coaches, I’m sure Indian hockey will be a redoubtable outfit in
the years to come.”

We have a team that could test anyone

Walsh touched on out-of-favour drag-flicker Sandeep Singh and indicated
that the ball is in his court if he wants to stage a comeback. “Look,
Sandeep is currently out of the 33 probables who are training for the
upcoming Asian Games. He has to work hard at the domestic tournaments
and the 2015 Hockey India League to merit
a place in the national side. Sandeep is a seasoned campaigner and I
know being part of the side for so long, he will find their comeback
route harder than ever before. If he can show that he deserves a place
in the national team, we will pick him,” he says matter-of-factly.There is a general perception that the team have the wherewithal to
beat sides ranked between 4 to 7 like England, Belgium, Argentina and
New Zealand, if not the top-3 (Australia, Germany and Netherlands).
Walsh has no doubts about it. “I agree that we have the ammunition to
beat these sides. I narrowly lost to England and Belgium in the World
Cup, but had beaten Korea and New Zealand. This clearly shows the team
is progressing.”
So what’s the realistic picture for the 2016 Rio Olympics? “I
strongly believe in getting the processes in place. I believe we need to
raise the performance bar and keep working on our basics. I don’t wish
to jump to any conclusions, but a top-6 finish is definitely there for
the taking,” he quips.

Thursday, August 14, 2014

The
Indian men’s hockey team will begin their preparatory camp for the
upcoming Incheon Asian Games at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in New
Delhi on Friday. The 33 probables will be put through their paces under
head coach Terry Walsh and other support staff. The team is brimming
with confidence after bagging a silver in the Glasgow Commonwealth
Games.

The
Sardar Singh-led side put up a splendid effort at the Glasgow
Commonwealth Games, stunning world number 6 New Zealand 3-2 in the
semifinals before losing the final to much superior Australia. At the
Incheon Asian Games, India will be pitted against defending champions
Pakistan, who failed to make it to the 2014 World Cup for the first time
ever, Korea and Malaysia.

India
have shown significant improvement this year, beating three higher
ranked teams under coach Walsh. They beat Olympic champions and then
world number two Germany 5-4 at the Hockey World League Final Round in
New Delhi, seventh ranked Korea 3-0 at the 2014 World Cup and sixth
ranked New Zealand at the recent CWG.

The Asian Games schedule is not yet out and it remains to be seen who are the teams India are pitted with.

The
development has left Hockey India hot under the collar. Hockey India
secretary general Narinder Batra has slammed the Sports Authority of
India (SAI) and the Sports Ministry for cold-shouldering the hockey
players. Batra wondered how commentator Anupam Ghulati, who is a former
employee of HI, can be part of the committee.

Hockey
India feels sorry for the seven players and now decided to dole out a
cash award of Rs 2 lakh each for all the seven players.

All
the seven hockey players have served the country well one hopes that
the development does not dent their morale ahead of their upcoming
international competitions.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

One
of the sad realities of Indian hockey is that we do hear players making their
international debuts, but unlike most other sports, players seldom get an
opportunity to announce a ‘formal retirement’ from the game – at most times
these players are dropped from the national team and we are often keep guessing
what are the selectors’ line of thinking as in some cases some players never
return to the national fold even they have age and form on their side. “In
India a hockey player makes his international debut, but never retires. Look,
when you say a player retires he should stop playing all forms of hockey like
you see in cricket. As for hockey a player dropped from the national side in
India continues playing at the state-level or club-level and there is no
clarity from the selectors also. That’s why I’m saying a hockey player in India
never retires,” says former Indian hockey captain Rajpal Singh in an exclusive
interview.

Rajpal
bore the brunt of Hockey India’s ire when he along with his players rejected the
shoe-string cash award of Rs 25,000 after India won the Asian Champions Trophy
in September, 2011 in Ordos, China. He led the protests against the federation
and was not only stripped of his captaincy but also axed from the national side
for India’s next international assignment – 2012 Olympics qualifiers held in
New Delhi in February 2012. So, effectively the Asian Champions Trophy was
Rajpal’s last international tournament and the final in which India beat
arch-rivals Pakistan was his last international match. Till date, we are left
to only assume that his international career is over, as there has been no
clarity from the national hockey selectors on Rajpal. “It wasn’t hard to
understand why I was stripped of captaincy and dropped from the national side.
I paid a price for taking the lead in protesting for the players’ rights,” the
former forward says.

Rajpal,
who made his senior international debut at the 2005 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup,
turns 31 next month and is only seeing things realistically as far as his
international career is concerned. “Although it is said everyone lives on hope,
the fact that of my former team-mates have become either selectors or coach, it
is an indication of where I stand,” Rajpal, who is married to Commonwealth
Games gold medallist and Olympian shooter Avneet K Sidhu, observes.

The
confabulation veers towards the Indian team's participating in the 2014
Commonwealth Games and Rajpal believes the good performance will bode well for
the team. “The boys dished out a good performance in CWG, which will keep the
boys in a good frame of mind for the Asian Games, where an Olympic berth is up
for grabs,” he quips.

Comeback
man Gurbaj Singh has been really shaping up well for India and Rajpal is not at
all surprised with the midfielder’s efforts. “Gurbaj is a class act and there
is extra hunger in him to do well given that he was dropped from the team after
the 2012 London Olympics. In my book, Gurbaj is not just an asset to the side,
he is also captaincy material – an option India can also exercise in future if
needed,” says Rajpal who like Gurbaj is employed with Punjab Police.

Rajpal
has many achievements on the hockey pitch, but which are the ones rates very
highly. “Winning the 2001 Junior World Cup in Hobart and winning the bronze
medal in the 2010 New Delhi Commonwealth Games,” he signs off.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

India 'A' men's hockey team whipped Bangladesh 3-1 to sweep the three Test series in Dhaka. The Indians took the lead through Yuvraj Walmiki before scoring another two in the second half through Gurjinder Singh and skipper Vikram Kanth.

Bangladesh scored their only goal in the second half. India had earlier won the first and second Tests by 2-1 and 5-1 margins respectively.

Friday, August 8, 2014

Pakistan’s
men’s hockey team captain Muhammad Imran feels India will post the
biggest threat at the upcoming Incheon Asian Games beginning next month.
Imran was quoted as saying in Pakistan newspaper Daily Times that Korea
and Malaysia will offer stiff challenge, but the biggest challenge will
be thrown by India.

The
35-year-old, who was part of the gold-medal winning Pakistan team at
the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games, rued Pakistan’s absence from the
recently-concluded Glasgow Commonwealth Games, depriving them of vital
international exposure ahead of the Asian Games, where the Greenshirts
will have a real battle on their hands to retain the title.

The
experienced fullback, who led the national team to glory in the 2012
Asian Champions Trophy in Doha, sounded confident of putting up a good
showing in Incheon under head coach Shahnaz Sheikh.

Former
French international player Frederic Soyez has been named the coach of
the Spain men’s hockey team. The Real Spanish Federation of Hockey took
this decision to appoint Soyez after the contract of former coach
Salvador Indurain was not renewed after a two-year stint, following
Spain’s disappointing eight place finish at the 2014 Rabobank World Cup.

The
Spanish side under coach Salvador Indurain managed to win only one game
in their league phase – they lost 0-3 to Australia 2-5 to Belgium, drew
England 1-1, drew India before pulling off their only win – a 5-2
victory over Malaysia – they lost to New Zealand 1-4 in a shootout in
the 7/8 place classification match after both teams are locked 1-1 in
normal time.

Indurain’s
replacement Soyez had earlier served as the national coach of the
France men’s hockey team as well as the Under-21 teams, is well
acquainted with Spanish hockey having played in the Spanish league for
over 7 years. He made 196 international appearances for France and
scored 195 goals and ended his playing career in 2009 before taking up
coaching with Lille in 2010, helping them win the French national title
to qualify for the EHL in the 2012/13 season.

Soyex’s
main challenge will be to lift Spain’s fortunes at the 2016 Rio
Olympics – they had finished sixth in the 2012 London Olympics after
losing to Belgium in the 5/6th place tie.

India’s
silver-winning performance at the recently-concluded 2014 Glasgow
Commonwealth Games has hardly gone unnoticed by the powers-that-be save
for a rousing welcome by Hockey India during the team’s arrival at New
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Neither
the Sports Ministry nor the corporate house have announced any
felicitation programmes or cash awards for the national team. But one
lady – Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa – seems to have taken the
lead announcing a cash award of Rs 30 lakh for Indian fullback Rupinder
Pal Singh for being part of the silver-winning team in CWG.

Rupinder,
who hails from Punjab, is employed with Indian Overseas Bank (IOB)
which is based in Chennai, and that’s explains why he is doled out the
cash award.

Goalkeeper
PR Sreejesh is another Indian player, who is employed with Indian
Overseas Bank (IOB) in Chennai. Midfielder Manpreet Singh, who was
employed with Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) earlier this year, but has
since switched over to Bharat Petroleum (BP).

India's men's 'A' hockey team came from behind to brush aside 30th ranked Bangladesh 5-1 to win the three Test series in Dhaka. India had earlier won the first Test 2-1.Harjeet Singh brought India on level terms after Bangladesh took the lead in the 7th minute. The goal literally opened the floodgates as Yuvraj Walmiki, SK Uthappa and Devinder Walmiki scored to put India in a commanding position at half-time with a 4-1 lead. Affan Yousuf added one more in the second half to seal an impressive win for his side.The third and final Test will be played on Saturday.

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

The Indian men's 'A' team put it across Bangladesh 2-1
in the first Test at Dhaka. The Vikramjeet Kanth-led side were pushed
on the backfoot when the 30th ranked Bangladeshi side took the early lead. India took some time to settle down and they soon hit rhythm levelling the issue through a field goal by drag-flick expert Gurjinder Singh. Talented Harjeet Singh produced the match-winner to ensure his side team 1-0 in the three match series.

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

The
silver medal-winning Indian men’s hockey team returned home this
morning after taking part in the Glasgow Commonwealth Games. The Terry
Walsh-coached side lost the one-sided final 0-4 to world champions to
settle for the silver – a repeat of what they achieved at the 2010 New
Delhi Commonwealth Games.

India
started their campaign on an insipid note, scrapping past Wales 3-1
before gradually hitting the groove easing past Scotland 6-2. India
upper their game by several notches and lost to world number one
Australia 2-4 in a well fought game, before going on to drub South
Africa 5-2 to reach the semifinals in style.

India,
who lost the services of regular skipper Sardar Singh for unbecoming
on-field behavior for the semifinal against New Zealand, surprised the
higher ranked Black Sticks 3-2 after trailing 0-2 at one stage to set up
a final date with Australia, where they finished second best.

India will get some time to recharge their batteries before they take part in the Incheon Asian Games beginning September 19 an event where the winner seals a berth for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Monday, August 4, 2014

A second-string Indian
men’s hockey team will play a three Test series against Bangladesh to gain
vital exposure before the upcoming Asian Games. Although team is marked by the
absence of players from the Commonwealth Games-bound squad, there is a possibility
that some of these fringe players could make it to the Incheon-bound squad. Experienced
defender Vickram Kanth will captain the so-called India ‘A’ side, while former forward-turned-midfielder
S K Uthappa will be his deputy.

The 18-member squad
features talented drag-flicker Gurjinder Singh besides medio Jasjit Singh, who
made his senior international debut at the 2014 World Cup. The team also
comprises Yuvraj Walmiki and Lalit Upadhyay, both of whom were sent as late-minute
replacements for the injured combo of Ramandeep Singh and Nikkin Thimmaiah at
the 2014 World Cup.

Yuvraj’s brother
Devender along with striker Nithin Thimmaiah, who played in the Hockey World
Final Round in New Delhi, is also named in the squad.

The team, which leaves
for Dhaka on Tuesday, will play the first Test against Bangladesh on August 6
and then have a day off before locking horns in the second Test on August 8.
The third and final Test will be played on August 9.

Sunday, August 3, 2014

New Zealand men's
hockey captain Dean Couzins has announced his retirement from international
hockey after his side lost the bronze medal play-off game against England 2-4
in a penalty shootout after both teams played out a thrilling 3-3 draw.

Couzins – one of the
solid fullbacks in the Black Sticks backline – represented his country in three
Olympics – 2004, 2008 and 2012. The seasoned defender made his senior
international debut in 2001 against Malaysia and made 318 international
appearances - he is Black Sticks' second most capped player after Phil Burrows.

The 33-year-old seasoned
defender played in four World Cups – 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 as well as three Commonwealth
Games – 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2012 editions.

Couzins will be sorely
missed by New Zealand in the 2016 Rio Olympics, where they will bid to corner
glory – the only time they won gold was at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

India’s hopes of winning its maiden Commonwealth Games hockey
gold went up in smoke as a well-oiled Australian outfit thumped them 4-0 in a
one-sided final match at the Glasgow National Hockey Center.

The Sardar Singh-led side, which turned in a superb effort to
reach the final, had to settle for the silver as his side struggled to match
the world champions. To be fair to the Indians, they looked a tad flat, perhaps
not recovering adequately from their energy-sapping semifinal against New
Zealand as back-to-back matches are never easy and can take a toll on the
players. There was no lack of intent from India, but physically they did not
seem to be there like the Kookaburras. The biggest solace for the 9th
ranked side will be that they made the CWG final ahead of 5th
England and 6th ranked New Zealand.

Australia asked quite a few occasions to the Indian defence in
the early stages and their persistence paid off when drag-flick expert Chris
Ciriello – one of the heroes of their World Cup triumph, including a hat-trick
in the final against the Netherlands – fired home a low flick beating PR
Sreejesh all ends up.

This was after India muffed their best opportunity to score
when Nikkin Thiamiah floundered in the Australian ‘D’ after Ramandeep Singh
drilled in a crafty backhanded pass. The Kookaburras forced another short
corner in the 20th minute, but Rupinder Pal Singh blunted it down as
the first runner.

India bungled a chance to equalize when Vokkaliga Raghunath’s
drag-flick off their first penalty
corner was stopped by Kieren Govers on the line.

India paid for not making the most of the scant opportunities
when Chris Ciriello converted Australia’s third penalty corner close to
half-time, unleashing a low shot that grazed Sreejesh’s stick en route to the
Indian goal.

India tried to up the tempo, but a crowded Aussie defence neutralized
their raids as the Terry Walsh-coached side trailed 0-2 at half-time. Ciriello pile on the agony of India, completing a hat-trick
converting their fourth short corner in the 49th minute. The match
was literally sealed in Australia’s favour when Eddie Ockenden tapped home a
Kierens Govers pass in the 51st minute.

The winds went out of the Indian sails after that as they
seemed resigned to their fate as the Aussies won their fifth successive CWG
gold medal.

The Indian men’s
hockey team will have a tough ask of halting the world champions Australia in
their tracks when they meet in the final showdown of the Commonwealth Games
being played at the National Hockey Center in Glasgow.

Australia will be a formidable opponent to counter in India’s
bid to win their first-ever gold at this multi-sport event, but no one can deny
that the Terry Walsh-coached side is playing some superb hockey in the tournament
and the soaring confidence of the boys must have led to a belief that they can
match Australia.

India will be boosted by the return of regular skipper Sardar
Singh, who was suspended for the semifinal tie against New Zealand for
unbecoming on-field behavior. The fact that India put it across the Black
Sticks 3-2 without the services of Sardar Singh after trailing 0-2 for most
part of the first half, must have infused a new-found lift in their game making
them feel that they can take on the Kookaburras.

The Australia have lost only one match in the Commonwealth
Games – going down 2-3 to South Africa in the inaugural edition in Kuala Lumpur
and not just India, even higher ranked teams like England and New Zealand have
never beaten Australia at this multi-sport event- just indicates the
stranglehold the Kookaburras have on this event.

India’s last win against Australia came at the 2010 Sultan
Azlan Shah Cup where they won 4-3. At the Commonwealth Games, India lost thrice
to Australia.

Saturday, August 2, 2014

The excitement the Indian men’s hockey team created when they fought tooth and nail against the world champions Australia before going down narrowly 2-4, paved the way for a ‘feel-good factor’ around hockey circles – the belief that this team can take on the best in the business.

The Terry Walsh-coached side was hit by the ‘early goal’ bug once again after a brief hiatus when experienced Simon Child put New Zealand ahead in the third minute of play after he was set up by Arun Panchia from the right, which saw Indian goalkeeper being embroiled in a collision with Hugo Inglis even as the ball rolled over to Simon Child.

Unperturbed by the early goal, India kept charting their comeback plans, weaving moves from both flanks, but it was the Black Sticks, who doubled the lead through Nick Hay off their second penalty corner.

Down 0-2, India showed little signs of nerves and reduced the margin close to half-time when stand-in captain Rupinder Pal Singh converted a penalty stroke after Dean Couzins was hit on the line off Vokkaliga Raghunath drag-flick off their first short corner.

Trailing 1-2 at hall-time, the onus was on India to call the shots and they precisely did that – Ramandeep Singh leveling the issue in the 43rd minute after Gurbaj Sinigh drilled in a crafty pass from the right.

The second half belonged to India, who dominated the midfield even without the absence of suspended Sardar Singh. Akashdeep Singh churned out the most important match-clincher with more than twenty minutes left for the final hooter, coming up with a superb reverse flick off a Manpreet Singh from outside the New Zealand ‘D’.

The Black Sticks tried to mount a fightback, but India continued to unleash persistent attacks on their citadel leaving them unsettled. As time wore on, they drafted in Dean Couzins as their kicking back replacing goalie Devon Manchester, but India manfully thwarted all their raids to stage a major upset, closing out a fantastic 3-2 win over 6th ranked side after being 0-2 down at one stage.

India will play the Sunday’s final against Australia, who humbled England 4-1. The final will be a repeat of the 2010 edition when Australia scored a crushing 8-0 win.